We left for our third and last destination on the itinerary, Gangtok, after breakfast next morning. We reached Gangtok early evening. After some light going around we got back to the hotel.
Early next morning we left for the Tsongo Pass which lies at the border of India and China. The Indian Army has a regiment based at the place for obvious reasons and hence we could see barracks placed in strategic places around the side of the mountain. We also had to provide a photo id and a permission slip to enter the area which we most willingly obliged.
The drive to the place is long and arduous. As we went higher up we saw melted snow here and there. Apparently it had snowed in the area 3 days back. The path dangerous and slippery at places. We actually needed help getting our vehicle out of the snow a couple of times.
Unfortunately for us, a light snow started falling and the Army declared it dangerous to go any further along the path. So, we stopped on the way to enjoy the beauty of the place and enjoy the light snow falling on our faces. We din't feel like leaving the place but ultimately had to else the path would be blocked and we'd be stuck in the area till the Army could clear out the snow and the path could be accessible again.
I really did want to see the pass though and the nearby Jaswant Baba's temple. They say Jaswant was a soldier who kept the Chinese away for 3 days all by himself until reinforcement could come and take over. He did die in the battle but tradition has it that he still lives in the area and protects the area from any kind of infiltration. The Army has a shrine built for him there and take care of it very faithfully.
We came back to the hotel early evening and then decided to go have a look around the place. We walked down to the center of the city for lunch and then spent some time looking at the stores around.
We came back late in the evening and spent some time repacking our stuff since we had to leave the next day for Delhi.
We left for Bagdogra airport the next morning after breakfast and reached Delhi late in the evening.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Phase II
Our next destination on the agenda was Kalimpong which is like 5 hrs away from Darjeeling. I spent half the journey catching up on my sleep and woke up when we stopped at a Cacti garden on the way. The Cacti garden has a huge collection if cacti, sum of which I havn't even seen so far. I had a blast taking photos of the varied sizes of cacti and entirely loved the whole experience.
We reached Kalimpong early afternoon. We freshened up and then left for sight-seeing immediately since we had only that one day to look Luckily Kalimpong doesn't have much too offer to look around. Just a few monasteries and in my opinion, you see one monastery and u've seen them all. So, we opted to come back to the hotel and take some much needed rest.
We reached Kalimpong early afternoon. We freshened up and then left for sight-seeing immediately since we had only that one day to look Luckily Kalimpong doesn't have much too offer to look around. Just a few monasteries and in my opinion, you see one monastery and u've seen them all. So, we opted to come back to the hotel and take some much needed rest.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Phase I
Ok...I'm back from my short vacation. Back to the maddening city and even maddening life in the city. I wish I still were on my vacation. It was an awesome experience, tiring yes, but reallllllly good.
We flew out of Delhi in the morning. After a quick layaway at Guwahati, we reached Bagdogra Airport around noon. Efficient that the travel agent was, we had a Tata Sumo waiting for us at the airport to take us to our destination, Darjeeling, which is like 5-6 hrs away. The weather down in the plains was a lil' more warmer than what it was in Delhi. We actually had to take off our jackets in the jeep.
The drive to Darjeeling is a scenic one. We stopped at a couple of scenic areas to take photos, but we din't dally around much since we wanted to reach Darjeeling way before it got dark. The winding roads up the hills were kinda scary to take in the rickety jeep that we were travelling along with the slow fog that was seemingly getting heavier as we ascended each bend. Even then we reached our hotel late in the night. Thankfully, the hotel had a hot dinner waiting for us when we reached which we had and fell asleep before our heads could even hit the pillows.
We had an early morning tryst with the sun the next day. So, at the break of dawn we were at the Tiger Hill to get a view of the Kanchenjunga breaking out of the dawn. The view was absolutely fantastic. Worth waking up early and standing in the early morning chilly weather.
The rest of the day was spent visiting the various tourist spots of the area... Buddhist monasteries, the Rock Garden, the Zoo, the Mountaineering Institute. We also took a trip to the nearby market and looked around the place.
We spent the next morning going around the Tea estates and then to the War Memorial. Unfortunately we din't get time to take a ride in the Toy Train since we had to leave for our next destination with wasting any more time.
I would be doing a great injustice if I din't spend a few lines describing the hotel and the service it gave us.
The hotel we stayed at is a small stone-wood establishment consisting of around 12 rooms. The rooms are small and cozy. The food even better. They actually served us food in our room including getting us extra helpings if necessary. The only problem with the place is that they do not have any in-room heating system. However they do provide an small room heater at extra cost.
We flew out of Delhi in the morning. After a quick layaway at Guwahati, we reached Bagdogra Airport around noon. Efficient that the travel agent was, we had a Tata Sumo waiting for us at the airport to take us to our destination, Darjeeling, which is like 5-6 hrs away. The weather down in the plains was a lil' more warmer than what it was in Delhi. We actually had to take off our jackets in the jeep.
The drive to Darjeeling is a scenic one. We stopped at a couple of scenic areas to take photos, but we din't dally around much since we wanted to reach Darjeeling way before it got dark. The winding roads up the hills were kinda scary to take in the rickety jeep that we were travelling along with the slow fog that was seemingly getting heavier as we ascended each bend. Even then we reached our hotel late in the night. Thankfully, the hotel had a hot dinner waiting for us when we reached which we had and fell asleep before our heads could even hit the pillows.
We had an early morning tryst with the sun the next day. So, at the break of dawn we were at the Tiger Hill to get a view of the Kanchenjunga breaking out of the dawn. The view was absolutely fantastic. Worth waking up early and standing in the early morning chilly weather.
The rest of the day was spent visiting the various tourist spots of the area... Buddhist monasteries, the Rock Garden, the Zoo, the Mountaineering Institute. We also took a trip to the nearby market and looked around the place.
We spent the next morning going around the Tea estates and then to the War Memorial. Unfortunately we din't get time to take a ride in the Toy Train since we had to leave for our next destination with wasting any more time.
I would be doing a great injustice if I din't spend a few lines describing the hotel and the service it gave us.
The hotel we stayed at is a small stone-wood establishment consisting of around 12 rooms. The rooms are small and cozy. The food even better. They actually served us food in our room including getting us extra helpings if necessary. The only problem with the place is that they do not have any in-room heating system. However they do provide an small room heater at extra cost.
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